This will be a tough year for Algeria, predicts journalist Najia Bouaricha from El Watan, a private leading newspaper.

It is her analysis that though Algeria sleeps on some $100 billion reserves from oil, the majority of its population suffers misery and deprivation.

Even more, she uses the new sobriquet ‘‘poor people in a rich country’’ to better illustrate the ambiguity and the paradoxes of the Algerian political system.

The country faces new terrorism challenges.

Three weeks ago, a suicide bomber hit the Constitutional Council and the United Nations office and left 40 dead and, another suicide bomber hit in the first week of this month at the Naciria police station in Boumerdes district, 45 kilometres east of Algiers killing four persons.

In both cases, the Al Qaeda group in the Islamic Maghreb claimed responsibility on the web.

Algerian security forces find it very hard to cope with this new suicide bomber phenomenon, notes journalist Adlene Meddi. He says that even though security forces have succeeded to wipe out a great number of members of the Salafist group or Al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb, terrorist groups innovate in their strategy to find new recruits that are not known to security forces and establish new urban networks hardly noticeable.

However, many suspects have been arrested, among them Maârouf Khaled considered mastermind of the double suicide bombers of April 11, 2007. Others have surrendered.

On the other hand, says Meddi, security forces face some difficulties in combating terrorism because of lack of coordination and communication between security and intelligence forces and within different services and structures.

Besides, some areas such as Boumerdes and Tizi ouzou districts have been for some time been off limits to security forces and have become training grounds for terrorist and armed groups.

At broad level, Mr Louis Caprioli; a French terrorism expert and special councillor to the International group on prevention and risks management affirms that ‘Algeria is a victim of the internationalisation of terrorism’.

He says: ‘‘What happens now is not specific to this country, even in Europe; Germany and Denmark have been targeted by Al Qaeda just like Iraq and Saudi Arabia.’’

On the economic front, although the country has over $100 billion reserves built from oil exports, ordinary people face hardships of life. There is also an unexpected increase of basic food prices, unemployment, illegal immigration of youngsters (who brave their lives to cross the sea to enter Europe) and housing shortage. Local journalist Hassen Moali says the privatisation process of public enterprises is still swinging between different rivalries and approaches of the government.

In addition to that, political uncertainty still prevails over President Abdelaziz Bouteflika’s intention to stand for a third term.

Mr Bouteflika has not revealed his plans. The National liberation front, an active member of the presidential coalition parties alongside the National democratic rally and the Islamic movement for peace society is exerting pressure on him to run in the 2009 presidential elections.

Mr Abdelaziz Belkhadem, chief of government and secretary general of the leading National Liberation Front party has called for a revision of the 1996 constitution in order to waive the president’s restrictions to only two terms.

On his part, Mr Ahmed Ouyahia former chief of government and secretary general of the National Democratic rally; a second political force in the Algerian political landscape, announced in an Algerian public TV programme that his party will not disclose its position until the president himself takes the decision.

The other presidential alliance party – Hams affirms that it is too early to talk about the presidential race as it is 16 months away.

‘‘There are very urgent issues and priorities to discuss and solve’, Mr Abdelmajid Menasra, former minister of trade and influential member of the Islamic movement Hams said.

On his his part, Mr Abdelhamid Mehri, a veteran of the Algerian politics, affirms in an interview with local media that ‘those opportunists and fundamentalists who call for Bouteflika’s third term mandate, intend actually to maintain their own privileges and positions.’’

He underlines that ‘extending present Bouteflika’s presidency could leads to further difficulties in solving problems of the country.’’

Mr Mehri asks for a radical change of the political system in Algeria.

Mr Mouloud Hamrouche, former chief of government who initiated political and economic reforms in the 1990s argues in El Watan that ‘appeals for constitutional revision are suggested to escape debate on the real democratisation of Algerian society.

‘As long as we have this regime, he stresses, we will have one and long lasting unique mandate’.